English // A Coyote Columbus Story
Introduction
This paper will be talking about “A Coyote Columbus Story” book that is written by Thomas King. The book talks about sociological and transitional pattern of a society’s culture that is represented by fictitious characters presented by the author. As an outline of the story, the book recreates how humanity developed over time by integrating new cultures and practices. The current beliefs and actions continue to change due to the presence of new insights and practices that are influenced by learning. Through education, human lives changes constantly because there are new insights and phenomena that work best for the society. As compared to the present society, the book delivers an example on how a community becomes productive by broadening their horizon as well as trying to adapt with the new environment so that their vision becomes productive that serves as a learning insight to the present society.
Going through with the discussion of the book, the author utilizes two main characters. They are the coyote, which is a female animal and the funny-looking red-haired man that is named as Columbus. Coyote is the trickster, who created the world as well as the creatures within it so that she could be able to control all events using her power. She termed her place as the “Coyote land” where the creatures that she created can be controlled. When she met the red-haired guy, her perspective of the world changed. This is because Columbus introduced another idea of trade, which he meant was to engage in merchandising because it is one of the best ways to survive and productive as a human being and as a creature. Columbus is more interested in engaging trade rather than using power, which he can use to deal with other traders and merchandisers to other places such as in Spain.
Going through with the book, the story defines a unique version on how European explorer Christopher Columbus reached and then settled in America. Columbus represented the red haired character that is also named as Columbus while the mythical creature is a Coyote, which is named as herself. The Coyote represented the Native Americans in the book. As the story goes, the book emphasized about the situation of Native Americans, having their independence as a community in the western hemisphere. The Coyote wants someone to play ball, but Columbus is interested in humans so he could use them as a commodity. This means that he is not interested in playing balls because he could not gain profits from it. Columbus wants to sell the humans in order for him to gain more bucks such as selling the Indians to other place to gain profits from it.
The only thing about the story is all about the author’s integration of televisions and computers, which is unusual for an author that tells about the historical events in the western hemisphere. These details from the book focus on the challenges in popular history because it contradicts the time where European exploration took place. In popular culture, electronic gadgets and appliances represents how the current society has been accustomed to. It represents how the value of trade makes an important statement that challenges the popular culture. The book tells the readers about the lust and the greed that the popular culture that have been practicing. This is because they always value the worth of money rather than engaging in interpersonal relationships with other individuals, neglecting their needs and interests. As a result, Columbus represents a society where trade and transactions invades the mind of a person that is against the rights of the Coyote.
Thomas King’s outstanding quote is “Those things were never lost, this says that those things were always here. Those things are still here today” (King, 117) that states about the principles and values of Native Americans. This is all about the pride and the preservation of culture by the Native Americans despite from the integration of new cultures and interests provided by the European Explorers as represented by Columbus. No matter how Columbus insists about searching for China and then wanting to take the humans as a commodity, Coyote’s value and culture will still never change because she built a community where money is not a problem. Coyote represents how Native Americans try to preserve their culture and still would like to carry out their cultures to their next generation in the future even if the traditions and practices are at risk for being influenced by modernization.
Coyote’s personality shows that she respected her culture and identity as a Native American person. She believes that her world represents unity because all the beings she created will follow her that can project a one happy community. Her main intent is to represent the Native American community away from the outside world. Columbus represents the outside world where he is from a community that always takes an opportunity to take advantage other’s resources in order to gain satisfaction through trade. The personality of Columbus reminds us about the challenges in the popular culture wherein there is a person who is always interested in making money for his business. This behavior alone could degrade the culture of other society that has been presented by the author. Columbus has the power to degrade the traditions and values of the Native American culture that is represented by the female Coyote who only wants to play ball.
The implication from the book is all about the significance of establishing an interpersonal relationship practice between two or more individuals and groups. The author presented about two characters that represented two different individuals. One common thing about the book is about the personalities of the two individuals. This is all about selfishness that the Coyote and Columbus possesses in the book. While the Coyote is busy carrying out her thing to manage power as well as teaching other creatures to play ball that will only satisfy herself, here comes Columbus who is also interested only in trade and would take advantage anything that satisfies his self-greed and interest. However, the most concerning issue from the book is all about the consequences of abuse because the two main characters are taking advantage against other’s rights and privileges as a way to satisfy their personal interests towards themselves.
The learning insight from the book is about embracing our cultures and wisdom. The author tries to make the readers back from the Golden Age of European Exploration because he wants to show how European explorers think during that time. Although the two characters play a major role in the book, these characters sends a message to the public regarding the importance of using power as a way to accomplish their missions. The childish behavior between the Coyote and Columbus is just an example on how it challenges the popular culture with regards to the issue of selfishness. With this regard, it is a congruent with the present culture’s way of understanding other individual’s feelings, rights, and privileges. The behavior of the main characters shows how popular culture has a dark secret, which is all about the selfish attitude that could harm other’s reputation as well as behavior due to selfishness and as an inconsiderate person according to Murphy & Coye (2013).
References
King, Thomas 2007. A Coyote Columbus Story. Accessed: https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=Mci2GAAACAAJ&dq=a+coyote+columbus+story+quotes&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjVuMrh7YDSAhUGmJQKHfRkAaMQ6AEIGjAA.
Murphy, Patrick J.& Coye, Ray W. (2013). Mutiny and Its Bounty: Leadership Lessons from the Age of Discovery. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300170283.
2017/5028
